The invention relates to dispensers for fluent matter, such as many food stuffs. Although having particular application to foods typically supplied to fish in domestic as well as commercial aquariums, it will be understood to also have application to apparatus for feeding dogs, cats, gerbils, and other animals. The invention also has application to apparatus for feeding goats, cows, pigs and other animals raised commercially.
The owners of fish and other animals are often constrained in their travel plans and other activities by the feeding schedules of their pets. It is of great importance for many people to be able to vary their personal schedules without altering the feeding schedule for their animals. The use of a standardized feeding cycle at, such as one feeding per day at a given time, is desirable because of the natural rhythm of many animals as well as the desirability of humane treatment of animals.
The apparatus which has been available prior to the present time, has in general not been wholly satisfactory because the common form of prior art apparatus uses a solenoid operated gate or valve to dispense a food stuff. The quantity of food stuff is varied by altering the stroke of the gate or other valve which is operated by a solenoid. The stroke is varied by positioning a physical stop such as a screw or bolt which can be rotated to vary the adjustment. In other forms the opening size is varied. Apparatus of the general types described are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,416,497 and 2,772,659.
It is an object of the invention to provide apparatus which facilitates the rapid adjustment of food stuff quantity without the necessity for using any tools to make the adjustment.
It is another object of the invention to provide means for agitating the fluent material which is being dispensed to avoid caking or other lodging of the fluent material.
It is another object of the invention to provide apparatus which may be constructed in large part from off-the-shelf apparatus.